Caterpillars Are the Best!
November 17, 2025
Caterpillar biodiversity is one of the most important aspects of a healthy ecosystem. As plant consumers, caterpillars unlock nutrients locked up in leaves and convert it to usable energy that millions of animals, from birds to wasps, depend on. Of course, that means besides eating leaves, the other thing a caterpillar tries to do is avoid being eaten themselves. They have some incredible features and behaviors to help them stay alive. In this video, Dr. Adrian Smith – Head of the Museum’s Evolutionary Biology & Behavior Research Lab and creator of the Ant Lab channel – reveals some of what makes caterpillars so special by showcasing some of the many caterpillar species found within 20 miles of Raleigh, North Carolina.
Featured species:
- Saltmarsh caterpillar – Estigmene acrea
- Monkey slug or hag moth caterpillar – Phobetron pithecium
- Stinging rose caterpillar – Parasa indetermina
- Snout moth caterpillar – Glyphodes pyloalis
- Birch sawlfy larvae – Nematus latitarsus (probably)
- Spicebush swallowtail caterpillar – Papilio Troilus
- Pipevine swallowtail caterpillar – Battus philenor
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